


Sad Friends Will Shrink in the Wash

by Mercules Hulliga-ga-ga- OKAY WHAT ELSE (Janeway_in_a_TARDIS)



Series: New Beginnings [2]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Angst, It ends cute, It's in the same verse if nothing else, Laf and Herc are a touch ooc but oh well, M/M, New Beginnings verse, my poor Mullette scream at each other, sequel of sorts to Cute Counter Boy?, sorta?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-29
Updated: 2016-06-29
Packaged: 2018-07-18 23:07:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7334365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Janeway_in_a_TARDIS/pseuds/Mercules%20Hulliga-ga-ga-%20OKAY%20WHAT%20ELSE
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Herc and Laf had always been the power couple of their friend group. They rarely argued, and when they did it didn't last for more than a few hours. This is what happens when that changes. </p>
<p>This is in the same verse as my story 'Cute Counter Boy' but it can be read alone if you wish!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sad Friends Will Shrink in the Wash

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! Here I am again! I know, this story is soooooo late. Well, I've had this wonderful thing called writer's block. I've started three different one-shots in this verse so far, and this is the only one that made it past a page in length. It's a lot angstier than CCB. Either way, enjoy!

When John had closed up the pizza parlour that night and walked home, he didn’t know what he was expecting. Usually, by the time he got back, Laf and Herc were either in bed or watching tv together. That being said, he had come home to some pretty strange things over the year he’d been rooming with Lafayette (and, subsequently, Herc, because the two had been inseparable for ages. John wasn’t even quite sure that Herc ever went to his own dorm anymore). John had come home to the two of them doing anything from playing DDR to making out on the couch. He had _never_ however, come home to yelling. And most _definitely_ none so intense.  
“I hate you! All you ever do is criticize! Hercules, do it like this this! No, Hercules, that’s not right! Well, you know what? I’ve had enough!” John heard Herc yell as he silently closed the door behind him. His eyes went wide as he looked back and forth between his two friends, who were standing on opposite sides of the room, both red in the face from yelling.  
“Well, you know what? I want nothing more to do with you, you _bâtard!_ Why don’t you just leave?” Laf shrieked back, their eyes pricking with tears.  
“Fine!” Herc shouted back. “Just maybe I will!”  
“Fine!”  
“Fine!” With his last yell, Herc turned on his heel and marched over to where John had flattened himself against the door, hoping to not be noticed. Apparently, it had worked, because when Herc saw him, he jumped slightly. He leaned in close to John and stage whispered to him, loud enough for Laf to hear.  
“You can tell your idiot roommate not to bother calling for the next few days. I’m pretty done with his French ass.” Herc shot a glare over his shoulder and stomped past John, slamming the door behind him.  
Lafayette and John were left in a heavy silence for a few beats, until Laf’s knees buckled and they let out a choked sob as they fell into a puddle on the floor. His friend’s hiccups and sobs knocked John out of his stunned silence and into action. He dropped his things on the floor and rushed over to Lafayette. He gathered their shaking form into his arms and leaned against the bedframe. Laf shifted until they were situated in his lap, arms around his neck as they cried into his shoulder. Eventually, their forceful sobs subsided into sniffles and they sat up mournfully. Their eyes were red from crying and their eyeliner was running in long streaks down their face where tears had caught it.  
“ _Je suis un idiot, John! Je suis un idiot!_ ” Their words forced a few more tears out and down their face. John reached up and gently wiped them away, taking a little of the messed eyeliner with them.  
“Hey, hey, Laf, it can’t be that bad,” John murmured, hugging the taller person close and rocking them gently.  
“Oh, but John it is! I just ran off the love of my life! He hates me!” Laf wailed, going back to sobbing into John’s shirt.  
“Shhh, shh, shh,” John soothed, rubbing circles into his friend’s back. “It’s okay. It’ll all be okay.”  
Finally, Laf quieted again. They lifted their head and looked at the ground. “ _Merci_ , John. I needed that. Sorry about your shirt.” Their voice was barely even a whisper as they stared at the rug they had insisted on when they moved in.  
“Hey, Laf, it’s okay. That’s what friends are for,” John said, soothingly. He hooked a finger under Laf’s chin and forced them to look at him. “Shirts can be washed. Sad friends can’t. They shrink if you dry them.” A ghost of a smile brushed across Laf’s face and John let himself smile back. He carefully moved Laf off of his lap and stood up, interlocking their fingers.  
“Wanna sleep in my bed tonight?” Laf nodded soundlessly as they stood. John threw on a pair of PJs as Laf snuggled into his turtle duvet. He quietly slipped in behind them and wrapped an arm around their lanky form.  
“We’ll talk in the morning, okay? For now just get some sleep.” Laf barely nodded, and John let out a sigh of relief, making himself comfortable and letting sleep take him. 

***

The next day was a Saturday, the one day that none of their friends had class or work. Usually, they all hung out somewhere, but today John knew that the weekly hang out would have to wait. He woke to find Lafayette in his bed and it took him a moment to remember what had happened before it all came rushing back. He took a sharp inhale of breath when he remembered the words that had flown across the room the night before. His gasp roused Laf and they rolled over, looking sleepily into John’s eyes, before seemingly remembering and then quickly looking away.  
“Hi,” John said, not sure how to start the potentially painful conversation.  
“Hi,” Laf replied.  
“You ready to talk?”  
Laf sighed and sat up, leaning against the wall, facing John on the bed. “ _Oui_ , I suppose.”  
“Okay.” John waited for them to start.  
Laf took another steadying breath before they closed their eyes and began to recount the story.  
“It started with me being a little stressed from a bad grade. I wanted nothing more than to just curl up with him and block out the world for a little while, but when I texted him he didn’t respond. I got back to the room and texted him again, telling him where to find me and that I missed him. He responded a little curtly, and I could tell something was wrong, but I was so self-absorbed in the moment that I didn’t feel like pressing the matter so I didn’t ask! Oh god, I should have made sure he was alright! After a little while, he came here and he had blood dripping down his face and his lip was split, and he had obviously been in a fist fight, and I should have been a good person, I should have helped him but I didn’t! I didn’t even bother asking if he was okay! I just let loose! I let out all of my anger and I screamed at him for being annoying and not there when I needed! I shouldn’t have! I’m a terrible significant other! Oh, _mon dieu!_ I would hate me too!” Laf wailed then burst into tears again.  
“Okay, Laf, you need to talk to him. Apologize. He’s head over heels for you! Just talk to him. It’ll be okay.” John gently pulled the crying person into another hug and held them.  
“Do you really think so?” Laf whispered. “I’ve never yelled at him like that, and he’s never yelled at me like that. I’m so worried, John. I don’t want to break up over this!”  
“Lafayette. Who was the first person you felt comfortable coming out to?”  
“John, I know what you’re trying to do, but-”  
“No, answer me,” John interrupted. “Who?”  
“Herc,” Laf sighed.  
“And who took you back to their dorm only days after you two had met because you had gotten knock-down drunk and he happened to see you?”  
“Herc,” Laf said, cracking a little smile at the memory.  
“And who held you through your panic attack about your exam?”  
“Herc.”  
“Exactly. He’s always been there for you, Laf. He loves you just as you love him. You’ll get through this,” John said kindly, squeezing Laf’s hand. He opened mouth to say more but his phone buzzed from across the room where he had left it the night before. Laf nodded over to it, telling him to go get it. He complied, walking over and looking at the text. 

From: Non-Stop Love: _Hey, babe. Want to get breakfast over at the dining hall? Herc and Laf are welcome too, of course._

John looked over at Laf. “Hey, Alex wants to know if we want to go get breakfast. I think it’ll be good for you, how about coming?”  
Laf sighed and conceded, “Alright, just let me change clothes.” John let out a sigh of relief and quickly texted back. 

To: Non-Stop Love: _yeah sounds great. laf’s coming, no herc, i’ll explain when we get there. tread carefully with laf. they’ve had a bad day/last night._  
From: Non-Stop Love: _Okay. They okay?_  
To: Non-Stop Love: _i think they will be. i’ve been doing damage control. talk when we meet._  
From: Non-Stop Love: _Okay. See you when you get here. Love you._  
To: Non-Stop Love: _Love you too._

John threw his phone on his bed and changed clothes quickly, looking up as Laf returned from the bathroom.  
“Ready to go?”  
“ _Oui_ ," they sighed, and followed him out the door. 

***

When they got to the dining hall, Alex had already gotten food and a table. John quickly got some pancakes and eggs and went over to sit with his boyfriend to fill him in on what had transpired the night before. When John finished talking, Alex was looking mournfully up at him.  
“I guess that explains a lot. Herc texted me early this morning asking if we could meet up later today to talk. We’re getting lunch this afternoon. I was-” Alex was cut off sharply when the two men heard distinct yelling from the omelette line. They both quickly jumped up and ran over to a sight that almost exactly mirrored the one John had walked into the previous night.  
“I’m sorry, if I had known you would be here I _wouldn’t have come!_ ” Hercules shouted. Laf’s hand that was holding a plate with some pancakes on it started to shake, and the pancakes fell, a fact that went completely unnoticed by either person.  
“Well, I’m sorry for trying to apologize! Next time I’ll just _ignore_ when my boyfriend who I screamed at last night is _right there_ and every fiber of my being is saying ‘go over to him! Make sure he doesn’t _hate you_ ,’" Laf’s voice rose in pitch, mocking, until their last two words, which dropped dangerously low.  
“You know what, _Lafayette_ -" John and Alex gasped-Herc never called them Lafayette “-maybe I don’t want your apology. I’m done. We’re through.” Now, it was the turn of the entire rest of the crowd that had gathered to gasp. Laf’s face fell and they looked on in shock as Herc slammed down the tray he was holding and stalked out. Alex and John exchanged a quick look and a silent agreement. Alex ran out the door after their other friend as John lept forward to guide Laf away from the crowd and out of the dining hall the back way.  
As soon as they were out of the hall, Laf collapsed onto a bench and put their head in their hands.  
“I really did it this time,” they mumble. “I actually pushed him to the point of no return. He’s not coming back. Oh god, John. I don’t have a boyfriend anymore!” With this, Laf looked up at John with tears shining in their eyes. John sat carefully down next to Laf, approaching him like he was a scared animal.  
“Laf, I need to know what happened again, okay? You were both upset, he probably wasn’t thinking about what he said. It’ll all be okay. Do you want to go back to the dorm and watch a movie? We have ice cream in the mini fridge. You can tell me what happened on the way.”  
Laf nodded numbly and let themselves be led back to the room. 

***

Alex was panting when he finally caught up with Herc. Alex had had to jog to keep up with him (damn his short legs!). He grabbed the taller man’s sleeve and Herc stopped, staring down at his doubled-over friend. When Alex finally regained his breath, he straightened up and glared at Herc.  
“What the hell, man?” He says, looking annoyed at the taller one. “That was completely uncalled for!”  
“I don’t think it was!” Herc snapped, taking a step back and folding his arms-effectively wrenching his sleeve from Alex’s grip. “I told them that I didn’t want to talk to them! Then they just waltz over and try to apologize like they hadn’t completely walked all over me last night! I’m sorry for wanting to be able to have emotions that were hurt too!”  
“Yeah, but breaking up with them over it? You completely crushed them, Herc! You didn’t see their face! They looked like you had killed their puppy! They still love you!”  
Alex watched as the realization dawned on Herc’s face and he stumbled backwards, blindly groping for the edge of a bench to sit on.  
“Oh my god. I just broke up with Laf. I just left the love of my life. Jesus, I’m such an idiot,” Herc murmured, his eyes widening. “Alex, you’ve got to help me! I can’t loose them! I love them! I don’t hate them! Oh god, _they_ probably hate _me_ right now! I just broke their heart! Oh god, they probably have that big sad-eyed puppy look right now! Oh my god, I’m an idiot. I’m an idiot!” He put his head in his hands dejectedly and rubbed at his eyes. When he looked back up, Alex had never seen him look so defeated. “Alex, please. You have to help me get them back.”  
“Of course,” Alex replied, taking his friend’s hand and sitting beside them. “I wouldn’t dream of anything else.”

***

Over the next week, Herc and Laf were never in the same room together for more than a few minutes at a time. If Herc walked into a room where Laf was, Laf would leave for fear of another unhappy confrontation. If Laf walked into a room with Herc, Herc would quickly leave in shame. Finally, one day, they both ended up stopping by the pizza parlour at the same time. Laf was already sat at the bar, staring absently at the tiling, when Herc walked in. John turned at the sound of the bell and saw who it was just as Laf stood up to leave again.  
“Hey, wait a minute! Don’t you dare! There’s no one else here, it’s been almost a week, and you two are both miserable. Sit right there and talk it out,” John snapped, stopping Laf in their tracks. He pointed to a table. “Sit.”  
Herc started to look hopeful and subtly moved towards the table, but stopped in his tracks at the sound of Laf’s voice.  
“I don’t know, _mon ami_. Maybe it’s best if we don’t. I can’t imagine Hercules would want to talk to me right now.” Laf’s voice was barely even a whisper, and they stared at their hands the entire time, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.  
“What? No, Laf, I _want_ to make up! I hate this!” Herc burst out, stepping towards his once-significant other. Laf’s head shot up.  
“What?”  
“Laf, I love you! I can’t stand being apart from you for so long! And not talking to you has been killing me! You can’t imagine how many times I’ve picked up my phone to text you before remembering that you hate me and probably would never want to talk to me again! I can’t believe I was such an ass, and I just want you back! You’re my sun and moon, and everything in between and I love you so much that it hurts! I’m sorry. I-I just-just, please, give me another chance,” Herc continued, his voice trailing off as he looked at Laf through his lashes. “I miss you.”  
Tears welled in Laf’s eyes and they took long strides forward, coming up directly to Herc and grabbing his face, roughly kissing him. They pushed him up against the front wall and his hands automatically caught their waist, holding on to them as if he was a drowning sailor and Laf was his piece of driftwood. John let out a whoop and twirled around the towel he had been using. Laf finally broke the kiss and gripped onto Herc’s shirt, tears flowing freely down their face.  
“I have missed you, _mon amour! Je t’aime! Je t’aime! Je t’aime!_ ” They sobbed, peppering Herc with kisses.  
“I missed you, too, love. I missed you, too,” Herc mumbled as he happily buried his nose in Laf’s puffy ponytail and let a few tears of his own slip out. “I love you, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, thanks for reading guys! That was a bit of a train wreck, but I hope you liked it none the less! I live for comments and kudos. Come yell at me on tumblr! I'm [Mercules HulligagaOKAY WHAT ELSE](http://merculeshulligagaokaywhatelse.tumblr.com/)! Come talk to me! I love meeting people!


End file.
